Showcase of the best FILMS in the world today.

Audience Award Winners:
Best Feature Film: I WANT TO BACK HOME
Best Short Film: THERAPY
Best Direction: HUG ME
Best Story: THE TOUCH
Best Micro-Short: LOVEBIRDS

Hug Me, 19min., Spain
Directed by M. Carmen Sánchez
Dalia lives on her birthday. Everyone hugs her, everyone ignores her…

https://www.instagram.com/mv.audiovisuales/

Therapy, 10min,. Spain
Directed by M. Carmen Sánchez
“Therapy” deals with the day-to-day life of a woman, Lola, who feels neglected by her husband, Manolo, and thinks that, through therapy with her psychologist, she can fix the situation.

Summer Turns to Fall, 1min., Canada
Directed by David Creighton
This micro-short, black and white animated film, is dedicated to suicide awareness, and those who are left behind.

The Touch, 13min., Croatia
Directed by Marko Visković, Erik Kyle Lončar
After just being informed about her sister’s death, Dolores spends the evening alone waiting for her husband to return home from a business trip. What was supposed to be a tear-soaked night turns into a surreal experience that will challenge our heroines view on life, death and family.

LOVEBIRDS, 4min., USA
Directed by Maria Corso
Betty and Ray, a wild couple on the run, live fast and love hard while staying one step ahead of the law. With their lives on the line and a clean getaway just out of reach, they attempt one more job — one which may cost them more than they can afford.

I want to back home, 85min,. Spain
Directed by Miguel Ángel Mengó
Ana, 14 years old, coexists with the terminal illness of his mother and his father’s sorrow . One day, her aunty and her daughter, Laura, the same age as Ana, propose her to live in another village. That will change the lives of Ana and Laura forever.

http://www.miguelangelmengo.com/quiero-volver-a-casa/

A showcase of the best animation films from around the world today.

AUDIENCE AWARDS:
Best Short Film: INSIDE ALONE
Best Story: ONE GIANT WADDLE
Best Music Video: IF I WERE A PONY
Best Micro-Short: VIPER PRODUCTS
Best New Media Film: TORNADO: WAR OF THE WORLD

INSIDE ALONE, 4min. Iran
Directed by Hossein Moradizadeh
Inside alone there is nothing. A black hole that smashes everything inside. Sometimes it’s a light star. Sometimes illusion and sometimes imagination. Such a world was created.

https://www.instagram.com/mora.films/

ONE GIANT WADDLE, 8min., USA
Directed by Kevin Jones
A group of penguins watching the moon landing gets jealous of the astronauts’ constant bragging about taking giant steps. While the penguins watching are stuck on Earth, with gravity keeping their steps so tiny that their walking style is mockingly referred to as waddling.

IF I WERE A PONY, 4min., USA
Directed by Leonard Eckhaus
If I Were a Pony by Leonard Eckhaus is the story of a boy and his pony told from the Pony’s perspective. The pony and the boy share many adventures. They ride across streams; they ride with friends and sometimes they just enjoy each other’s company.

VIPER PRODUCTS, 2min., Canada
Directed by David Creighton

Tornado: War of the world, 15min., Iran
Directed by Majid Frazolanhi
An alien race attacks another planet and after destroying it, attacks Earth with its spaceships. One of the ships destroys cities using a large tornado. In another place, the ships destroy buildings with lasers. The armies of countries fight against the aliens. While a gate opens and many spaceships attack Earth. Godzilla enters and calls on the superheroes of Earth.

https://www.instagram.com/majidfarzolahi

Showcase of the best POLITICAL FILMS in the world today.

Audience Award Winners:
Best Feature Film: CANADA UNPLUGGED:( Part 1) The Perfect Storm
Best Short Film: Eureka!

Eureka!, 15min., Canada
Directed by David Creighton
In this animated micro-short, a conspiracy nut finally grasps the truth.

CANADA UNPLUGGED:( Part 1) The Perfect Storm, 56min., Canada
Directed by Sangita Iyer
A bold, eye-opening documentary from Mettle Films, directed by award winning filmmaker Sangita Iyer, explores diverse Canadian voices discussing the impact of mass immigration in Canada. In this two-part series, we hear real concerns, lived experiences, and urgent questions about Canada’s immigration system, cultural cohesion, housing crisis, and economic pressures.

https://www.instagram.com/mettlefilms

A showcase of the best from the STYLE, EXPERIMENTAL, FASHION festival.

AUDIENCE AWARDS:
Best Short Film: FOR THE LOVE OF DOGS
Best Direction: ALEPH

FOR THE LOVE OF DOGS, 27min. India
Directed by Mohanjeet Baldev Singh Kalsi
In the biting cold of North India’s winters, thousands of stray dogs struggle to survive, unseen and unheard. But in the bustling city of Gurugram, one man refuses to look away.

https://www.instagram.com/fortheloveofdogs2025

ALEPH, 29min,. Brazil
Directed by Joao Butoh
To live or not to live in the shadow of a society.
Can politics, religion and ethnicity force you to live up to established standards?
What is the price of your happiness?
Live your life or live the life that others attribute to you?

https://www.instagram.com/joaobutoh

A showcase of the best European Films in the world today.

AUDIENCE AWARDS:
Best Short Film: TOY
Best Story: KAZBEGI
Best Micro-Short: KINOKARENINA
Best New Media Film: Retrato (Portrait)
Best Visual Design: GLASOUT

Kazbegi, 5min., Slovakia
Directed by Yakiv Antypenko
Set to a traditional folk song recorded live at a Georgian wedding, this short documentary immerses viewers in the natural and cultural rhythm of the Kazbegi region. With no narration, the film focuses on the detailed sound design and visual atmosphere — where every insect and breeze plays like an instrument in a living orchestra.

https://instagram.com/jackfoto1

TOY, 11min., Greece
Directed by Natasha Smyrnaiou
New Years Eve. Nikos is looking for a New Year’s gift for his godchild in a toy store with a strange salesman. During his stay there, he evoked memories of his own childhood. He finally gets a toy, but not what he thinks..

https://instagram.com/natasha_smyrnaiou?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==

KINOKARENINA, 1min,. Ukraine
Directed by Andrii Makarchenko
She really wanted their wedding day to last forever. But… Dedicated to Jean Cocteau and Leo Tolstoy.

Retrato (Portrait), 1min., Spain
Directed by Ignacio Rodó
Your portrait can capture you. You decide how to shine in it.

https://www.instagram.com/ignacio.rodo

Glasout, 2min., Germany
Directed by Mert Akbai
A couple communicates their love and the glass.

http://www.edition-abel.de/

Showcase of the best FILMS in the world today.

Audience Awards:
Best Short Film: MELODRAMA
Best Direction: SIZWE
Best Peformances: QUANTUM CAUSALITY CONUNDRUM
Best Story: Don’t pretend you didn’t see me
Best Micro-Short: THE PRISONER

THE PRISONER, 1min., India
Directed by Allabhya Ghosh
Life is confined to a ten-foot-by-ten-foot room. That’s the norm in the suburbs now.

Don’t pretend you didn’t see me, 1min., Argentina
Directed by Jimmy Alejandro Castro Zambrano
The narration of the experiences of a blind person who moves through the city.

https://instagram.com/jimmyartista

MELODRAMA, 34min., Italy
Directed by Giuseppe De Vuono
Rebecca Reveal, a promising designer, lives with her husband in an old farmhouse lost in the middle of the countryside. She is a beautiful woman, visionary and devoted to the art world, he a paranoid and egocentric man. They seem the picture of the perfect family, but both are hiding a secret that will push them beyond their limits.

Sizwe, 28min., South Africa
Directed by Ayanda Makayi
The story of a young, deaf Xhosa girl, overcoming adversity in the height of lockdown to save her gogo (grandmother).

https://www.instagram.com/sizweshortfilm/

Quantum Causality Conundrum, 2min., USA
Directed by Aki Aitos
While walking back to a college campus, Emma and Lila delve into the nuances of quantum mechanics and causality, balancing profound curiosity with the practical need to get to class on time.

Question & answer session after the festival screening with filmmakers from the August 14, 2025 festival at the Carlton Cinemas, in downtown Toronto, Canada.

Conversation with directors:
– Josh Holliday Hammerstone Meets Woofstock
– Filmmakers of Crabsassin

Hammerstone Meets Woofstock, 20min., Canada
Directed by Josh Holliday
A film that straddles the line between narrative and documentary, landing squarely on comedy. Steve Hammerstone is a small town radio host and big time buffoon, who’s sent to explore Woofstock: North America’s largest festival for dogs.

https://www.instagram.com/stevehammerstone/

Crabsassin, 1min., Canada
Directed by Studio S222 (14 students)
A stormy night at the docks, a killer is out for his target…

AWARD WINNERS:

Best Film: Crabsassin
Best Micro-Short: Brush Me
Funniest Film: Douche Canoe
Best Performances: Hammerstone Meets Woofstock
Best Direction: A Fair Sister
Best Relationship Film: Red Plump Tomatoes
Best Story: Dangle the Cat
Best Twist Film: The Surgical Treatment
Best New Media Film: B.I.

SEE THE LINEUP OF FILMS:

DANGLE THE CAT, 13min., Ireland
Directed by Niall Reynolds
3 thieves are chased into a messy situation, involving 2 cat thieves, an unhappy couple, a con man and yes… A cat.

The Surgical Treatment, 5min., USA
Directed by David Gray
A satirical observation of the advertising business through the aspect of the pre-production process. A funny perspective on treatments and what it might be like if another industry had to go through what directors. producers and creative people go through on every project in the process of bringing something to life. In this case, literally.

B.I., 15min., Australia
Directed by Stuart Morley
A businessman’s battle with Artificial Intelligence.

https://www.instagram.com/b.i._short_film

Douche Canoe, 2min., USA
Directed by Craig Melville
Brother Mouth presents ‘Douche Canoe’, a music video that satirizes the greedy, environmentally destructive elites who can’t tell their mouths from their derrières.

https://www.instagram.com/brothermouthofficial/

Hammerstone Meets Woofstock, 20min., Canada
Directed by Josh Holliday
A film that straddles the line between narrative and documentary, landing squarely on comedy. Steve Hammerstone is a small town radio host and big time buffoon, who’s sent to explore Woofstock: North America’s largest festival for dogs.

https://www.instagram.com/stevehammerstone/

Crabsassin, 1min., Canada
Directed by Studio S222 (14 students)
A stormy night at the docks, a killer is out for his target…

A Fair Sister, 8min., USA
Directed by Matt LaCorte
Two sisters meet for lunch and share secrets.

RED PLUMP TOMATOES, 13min., USA
Directed by Nick Wilson
After moving in with his young and successful girlfriend Tara, Desmond has found himself in a bit of rut. Experiencing feelings of insecurity towards himself and his personal relationships, he is beckoned to attend a meeting by a close friend, Nympho-Nick, in order to tackle these harmful thoughts.

Brush me, 2min., Austria
Directed by Nikolaus Jantsch
In a bustling bathroom, amidst the chaos of everyday life, two toothbrushes, find themselves drawn to each other. “Brush me” is a heartwarming tale of love, loss, and the resilience of the toothbrush spirit.